Friday, 15 November 2013

New Leader Of Pakistani Taliban Could Splinter Group.

New Leader Of Pakistani Taliban Could Splinter Group.

Mullah Fazlullah, the new leader of the Pakistani Taliban (AP Photo/SITE Intel Group)

WASHINGTON | 15 Nov 2013 :: The suspected U.S. drone
strike that killed the leader of Pakistan’s Taliban (Tehrik-i-Taliban),
Hakimullah Mehsud, has set off a power struggle within the militant
group, and has exposed sharp divisions that analysts say could further
destabilize the region as NATO combat forces leave neighboring
Afghanistan in 2014.

Taliban sources and local journalists in turbulent North Waziristan and
South Waziristan in Pakistan told VOA that the selection of hardline
cleric Mullah Fazlullah as the new chief has left the group in disarray
that may result in a splintering to smaller, difficult-to-control
factions.

Fazlullah was selected by a council of Pakistani Taliban leaders after
the death of its chief, Hakimullah Mehsud, November 1. Fazlullah, who
reportedly has the support of Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Omar, became
known as ‘Mullah Radio’ for his fiery anti-Western and pro-jihadist
speeches on FM radio in the Swat Valley of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
province between 2007 and 2009 Exploiting anti-government sentiment
in his home region and using brutal tactics, Fazlullah took control of
the Swat Valley and instituted harsh Islamic rule that terrorized much
of the population.

But in 2009, Pakistan's army launched an operation against militants in
the area. Wounded in the fighting, Fazlullah managed to escape to
Afghanistan, where analysts and journalists say he remains to this day.
In 2012 he claimed responsibility for ordering the failed assassination
of the teenage activist, Malala Yousufzai, for her efforts to educate
girls in Swat. (Source: AP/AFP).